Sucrose fatty acid esters are known to be useful as replacements for triglyceride fats. U.S. Pat. No. 3,600,186 to Mattson et al. discloses low calorie, fat-containing, food compositions in which at least a portion of the triglyceride content is replaced with a polyol fatty acid ester such as a sucrose ester, the polyol fatty acid ester having at least four fatty acid ester groups with each fatty acid having from 8 to 22 carbon atoms.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,005,196 to Jandacek et al. discloses the polyol fatty acid esters of the Mattson et al. patent, in combination with fat-soluble vitamins selected from Vitamin A, Vitamin D, Vitamin E and Vitamin K.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,005,195 to Jandacek discloses anti-anal leakage agents added to the polyol fatty acid esters to prevent an undesirable laxative effect. The agents include solid fatty acids (melting point 37.degree. C. or higher) and their triglyceride source, and solid polyol fatty acid esters.
Bailey, Melting and Solidification of Fats, p. 36, Interscience Publishers (1950) discloses that rapid solidification of triglycerides in a melt or solution can often be initiated by "seeding" the liquid with a small proportion of crystals from an extraneous source.
None of these references suggests a way to make particular intermediate melting sucrose fatty acid ester compositions that are capable of rapid crystallization from the melted state.
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide intermediate melting sucrose fatty acid ester compositions that crystallize rapidly from a melt.
It is a related object of the present invention to provide these rapidly crystallizing compositions by the incorporation of particular kinds of hardstock materials.
It is another objects of the present invention to provide shortenings and margarines that contain the sucrose fatty acid ester compositions.
These and other objects of the invention will become evident from the disclosure herein.
All parts, percentages and ratios used herein are by weight unless otherwise defined.